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OWwin 
1Man., 1900.] | QUEENSLAND AGRICULTURAL JOURNAL. 209 
Botany. 
THE BURR MEDICK, OR CLOVER (IEDIOAGO DENTICULATA, 
Willd.) 
Tits Plant is said to be one of the most pestilential of all our burr-bearing 
Wants, Mr. J. H. Maiden, Government Botanist and Director of the Botanical 
ardens, Sydney, says of it:— 
D; The name of the plant is derived from the Greek word Medike, given by 
hae orides toa kind of grass, and the Latin adjective denticulata signifying 
‘ving small teeth, in allusion to the margins of the leaves. Its vernacular 
M °s are—Burr Clover, Creeping Burr, Medick Clover, Medick Kurr, Toothed 
f edick, Botanically, it is described asa nearly glabrous plant, with small yellow 
ments: has lanceolate stipules, and with a flat pod, deeply reticulate, with two 
‘ three folds and a double row of spines. It is usually an annual, but in many 
eltered places in the coast districts Mr. Maiden believes it may be perennial. 
i a astoralists make many complaints pene se ete) Sera as 
ext y injured by the burrs becoming entangled in the fleeces. To. é 
®nt does this occur that Mr. Maiden has seen fleeces which he says It would 
n nO exageeration to say thatthe greater part consisted more of vegetable 
iter than of wool, and, as the ordinary processes for cleansing wool are useless 
dha €eces in such a condition, very heavy losses are sometimes esgslontenvedt by 
%Olerowers. 
There is another objection urged against the Burr Clover, and that is that, 
§ to its rapid and dense growth, it smothers out nutritious but less 
porous pasture. Finally, in early summer it dies down, and Omroe EM the 
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mc ae there is no pasture left for the stock at a period when food is most 
ed. 
Ror Considered as a forage plant, Mr. Maiden says :—“ I do not call to mind any 
ne8 Of comparative experiments (chemical and physiological) which would 
Ye us Specific data as to the value of this plant for forage purposes, but the 
— &eneral 
aus Tal Opinion is that, while nutritious, it is of second-class value. We must 
the ®nd our judgment in this respect, but we are certain that in many parts of 
sto ie ony it produces an exuberant growth of bright-green fodder which 
lines fat readily enough, and on which they appear to thrive. It is only 
i ond the Dividing Range that it becomes a real nuisance, for in the coast and 
nei, mountain districts comparatively few sheep are kept, and the burrs are 
jt 8o abundant nor as rigid as those from plants ons the Western plains. 
Moy snally came from the Mediterranean region, but is now naturalised in 
: €mperate and warm countries.” 
Our illustration is from a block kindly supplied by the Agricultural 
tatit of New South Wales, from which journal the gist of our article is 
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